20140626

Andrew K. Peterson

Sequence excerpted from The Adorable Details

Gradual Progress → Increase

[ending “yes”

from the stars. Black mirrors became astrological&nbsp&nbsp melted, possibly
even overshot, but combined with&nbsp an interior, an informal
dinner party or&nbsp a bluebird, a diversion that contradiction
offers.&nbsp&nbsp does not move with its proper motion.&nbsp Put
my finger on, being reducible to&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp a body is
easy to refuse, but to accept the necessity of
a thing&nbsp&nbsp in waking hours we are subject to
the word P O N D S sprayed on the wall&nbsp&nbsp to attract

the stars as they accomplish&nbsp what mirrors do not
in silence&nbsp&nbsp the answer to that question is yes

*[beginning “because”

because of a love without beauty or&nbsp&nbsp the sleeper
who crosses the madness of&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp a sentence I have
yet to offer&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp being for the other, I will
call disquiet, the threatened gaze, the black mirror between
the grip and what is seized&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp small fires and
milk and every building&nbsp&nbsp wearing matching gingham shirts and
posing with mistakes and truths resembling each other, all
vital statistics of being called a citizen. birthday parties

on every threshold a waiting that is&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp their doubling
is also doubled by another&nbsp&nbsp won’t escape me through
the sentimental window&nbsp&nbsp with eyes full of water to
drink&nbsp we stared at the map and listened&nbsp toward
the turning / to materialize / that change&nbsp&nbsp of the divine
and a rendering of&nbsp this damaged still life, importing
or rearranging&nbsp the fact of tragic repetition, each time
it lives, it will have no garden&nbsp to hear

what the sainted children wrote&nbsp&nbsp to argue and woo,
to lend itself to everything, to everyone and no one

*[beginning & ending “Don’t”

Don’t know. Don’t know, don’t know, don’t– did not–
know. how to explain this. Trace (the tracing of
a difference) could know (&nbsp&nbsp ) that you can’t (&nbsp&nbsp ) control the
suffering. What pearls are there to cast to&nbsp&nbsp know.
Don’t know, don’t know, don’t know.&nbsp No longer visible
to anyone, property of a mirror and a song.
Beauty is a doubling of something doubled up already:
ruin. At the origin comes ruin; ruin&nbsp&nbsp as you’d

make a movie backwards. to what difference between the
presence and absence: know, don’t know, don’t know. Don’t.

*[beginning “like”

like the cries of birds, shrill, metallic. Niagara Falls,
the way of the world. My humanity is on
Hawthorne’s back. A naked shadow of the benignly obscene
naked neighbor in the naked window / across the window
in the bedpost glow, a hand cuff. Okay, I
imagined that but still it makes a poem sexier
like the words camelback milkshake like the words like
the cries of birds, shrill, metallic. So what’s it

you want to carry again into the future of
choice? what you don’t know may hurt somebody else

*[beginning “what”, ending “abundance”

what are you but a drifting crowd?&nbsp&nbsp The war
is entering its last phase (not soon enough that
it would make any difference) maybe I don’t want
to find out that life isn’t going to be everything
enough. Probably enough. Or too much. Oh, still I prefer
regret to how to sleep; the bird-and-flower-genre to
circular losses. (missing) all the universes to probability, tracks.
I continue, after all, & the consequences. Blake said,

Throw I-Ching hexagram. Each line will have particular bearing upon how poem
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp sequences are constructed: 1st line determines # of poems per sequence; 2nd line
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp determines # of lines per poem; 3rd line determines # of words per line; 4th line
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp determines # of sources per poem; 5th line determines # of words per 'source
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp cluster'; 6th line PLUS the final hexagram # EQUALS which page # each word
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp cluster comes from
Adding the values of each line with a CHANGE determines the increment of change for
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp subsequent poems in sequence.
The total # of changing lines determines a final stanza to be added to each poem in the
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp sequence.
The name of each hexagram thrown and its subsequent change will determine title for
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp each sequence
The number of sequences in this book has been determined based on the value of a
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp separate single throw of three coins: the value of which is 9.
An additional rule on sources: (a) each subsequent poem in a sequence should have at least
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp one source replaced by another (b) each new sequence will retain one source from
&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp the previous sequence

Andrew K. Peterson is the author of two poetry collections, some deer left the yard moving day and Museum of Thrown Objects (both published by BlazeVox Books). His chapbook bonjour Meriwether and the rabid maps (published by Fact-Simile Press in 2011) recently appeared in an exhibition on poets’ maps at The University of Arizona’s Poetry Center. He co-edits summer stock, an online poetry journal, and lives in the Boston area.